Read Online 04 Volcano Adventure by Willard Price - Free Book Online
Authors: Willard Price
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Chapter 9
The avalanche
The next day they went to the crater of Aso - a long distance, so the trip had to be made by train. Then a stiff clamber up through lava boulders. At last they stood looking down into a boiling pot half a mile wide.
Hundreds of feet down were thunderous tumbling pools of sulphurous mud sending up geysers of fire. They were like red clutching fingers that barely reached those who stood peering over the edge. Some of the rising clouds were of snow-white steam, others were pitch-black smoke.
The gases were stifling. Everyone got out his handkerchief and tied it across his nose to keep out the stench of brimstone. An icy wind pulled and pushed as if determined to throw them in. Their backs ached with cold while the cooking heat struck them in the face. The doctor made his usual observations and records and the boys helped him whenever they could.
They were glad to get down from the biting cold of this mile-high mountain to a tea house on the slope, where they drank hot tea and ate curious little cakes filled with sweet bean paste.
Again the Lively Lady put to sea, and again she put in to a Japanese port, this time to visit the monster volcano called Sakura-jima.
‘Sakura means cherry,’ said Dr Dan, ‘and jima means island. Cherry is all right - it describes the colour of the red-hot lava - but island is all wrong. It used to be an island until 1914 when a terrific eruption threw up so much lava that the sea was filled between the volcano and the mainland and the island was turned into a peninsula. The city on the mainland was shaken to bits and one village near the volcano was buried under 150 feet of lava. Ninety-five thousand people lost their homes.’
‘Is that the only time she erupted?’ Hal asked.
‘By no means. Old Cherry has blown up twenty-seven times in the past five centuries.’
‘Well, I hope she’s all done now.’
‘I’m afraid not. They say she’s getting ready to stage a new act. Let’s go up and see for ourselves.’
The way led at first through orange groves and vegetable gardens. Everything was growing lushly in the soil kept warm by the fires underneath. Farther up the trees and fields disappeared and there was nothing but savage black rocks. Every once in a while the shaking of the mountain would dislodge a rock and it would come tumbling down, a great danger to climbers.
At last they reached the dropping-off place and looked down into their fourth crater. Old Cherry deserved her name - the waves and fountains of liquid lava were cherry-red. They looked very angry and it was easy to believe that they were planning mischief.
The doctor went to work with his instruments, and by now Hal and Roger were able to be of real help to him.
‘Let’s go around the crater,’ suggested Dr Dan. ‘There won’t be time for us all to make the complete circuit. Suppose we split up - two will go one way and two the other and we’ll meet at the far side. Roger will go with me.’
The doctor and Roger struck off while Hal and Kobo went in the opposite direction. There was no path along the edge of the crater and the way was very rough. The lava here had been exploded by gases into glassy fragments as sharp as needles and pins, and when Hal stumbled and fell he came up with his hands full of slivers.
‘Not the nicest place in the world to go for a walk!’ he said as he picked the sharp points from his hands.
‘Not the nicest place to go for a walk,’ repeated Kobo, practising his English.
At every step they crushed through a bed of black lava glass a foot deep. Their socks were soon cut to ribbons and their legs bled. The blades of glassy rock were as sharp as razors.
‘Obsidian,’ Hal said. Tn ancient times before iron was discovered people used to make knives out of this stuff.’ Hal stopped to jot down in his notebook items that he knew the doctor would want to have. He stood still only a moment, but the scorching heat from below came up through the
Chapter 9
The avalanche
The next day they went to the crater of Aso - a long distance, so the trip had to be made by train. Then a stiff clamber up through lava boulders. At last they stood looking down into a boiling pot half a mile wide.
Hundreds of feet down were thunderous tumbling pools of sulphurous mud sending up geysers of fire. They were like red clutching fingers that barely reached those who stood peering over the edge. Some of the rising clouds were of snow-white steam, others were pitch-black smoke.
The gases were stifling. Everyone got out his handkerchief and tied it across his nose to keep out the stench of brimstone. An icy wind pulled and pushed as if determined to throw them in. Their backs ached with cold while the cooking heat struck them in the face. The doctor made his usual observations and records and the boys helped him whenever they could.
They were glad to get down from the biting cold of this mile-high mountain to a tea house on the slope, where they drank hot tea and ate curious little cakes filled with sweet bean paste.
Again the Lively Lady put to sea, and again she put in to a Japanese port, this time to visit the monster volcano called Sakura-jima.
‘Sakura means cherry,’ said Dr Dan, ‘and jima means island. Cherry is all right - it describes the colour of the red-hot lava - but island is all wrong. It used to be an island until 1914 when a terrific eruption threw up so much lava that the sea was filled between the volcano and the mainland and the island was turned into a peninsula. The city on the mainland was shaken to bits and one village near the volcano was buried under 150 feet of lava. Ninety-five thousand people lost their homes.’
‘Is that the only time she erupted?’ Hal asked.
‘By no means. Old Cherry has blown up twenty-seven times in the past five centuries.’
‘Well, I hope she’s all done now.’
‘I’m afraid not. They say she’s getting ready to stage a new act. Let’s go up and see for ourselves.’
The way led at first through orange groves and vegetable gardens. Everything was growing lushly in the soil kept warm by the fires underneath. Farther up the trees and fields disappeared and there was nothing but savage black rocks. Every once in a while the shaking of the mountain would dislodge a rock and it would come tumbling down, a great danger to climbers.
At last they reached the dropping-off place and looked down into their fourth crater. Old Cherry deserved her name - the waves and fountains of liquid lava were cherry-red. They looked very angry and it was easy to believe that they were planning mischief.
The doctor went to work with his instruments, and by now Hal and Roger were able to be of real help to him.
‘Let’s go around the crater,’ suggested Dr Dan. ‘There won’t be time for us all to make the complete circuit. Suppose we split up - two will go one way and two the other and we’ll meet at the far side. Roger will go with me.’
The doctor and Roger struck off while Hal and Kobo went in the opposite direction. There was no path along the edge of the crater and the way was very rough. The lava here had been exploded by gases into glassy fragments as sharp as needles and pins, and when Hal stumbled and fell he came up with his hands full of slivers.
‘Not the nicest place in the world to go for a walk!’ he said as he picked the sharp points from his hands.
‘Not the nicest place to go for a walk,’ repeated Kobo, practising his English.
At every step they crushed through a bed of black lava glass a foot deep. Their socks were soon cut to ribbons and their legs bled. The blades of glassy rock were as sharp as razors.
‘Obsidian,’ Hal said. Tn ancient times before iron was discovered people used to make knives out of this stuff.’ Hal stopped to jot down in his notebook items that he knew the doctor would want to have. He stood still only a moment, but the scorching heat from below came up through the
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